Neverwinter – Open Beta First Impressions

Update – 15:34 pm: Here’s how combat works. There’s no real action bar like in traditional mmorpg’s, instead attacking is similar to combat in games like Diablo and Torchlight. There’s an attack bound to either of the two mouse buttons, Magic Missile and Ray of Frost in my case. Alternating between them works well, and it’s easy to see how this particular way of fighting could allow for some great strategies later on in the game.

Aside from those two skills, I’ve also unlocked Chill Strike -tied to the Q-button- that relies on a cooldown to add some balance to its destructive power. Lastly my Control Wizard is able to summon an Ice Storm, dealy major damage to everything around. This spell can only be cast as you fill up a bar by attacking enemies. To put it bluntly; it’s the kind of attack that’s normally supposed to be used at the exact right time during raids, or acts as a cop-out when things are about to turn grim.

Then there’s dodging. Yes, dodging. It’s the latest fad in mmorpg-land, with Guild Wars 2 making it popular demand. Tap twice during combat and you’ll roll/jump/blink out of the way. Dodging in Neverwinter uses a certain amount of stamina so spamming this skill will only make it unavailable when you actually need it.

So far I’m liking the game. It’s somewhat direct approach tocombat is refreshing and requires active input from players. There’re also plenty of mesmerising sceneries, like in the screenshot below, taken during an assault on one of Neverwinter’s -the city- bridges.

My only complaint so far: character animations during cutscenes are rough and spastic. That and my internet connection decided to stop working for a few minutes, kicking me back to entry-queue.

Some words of advice: don’t start playing yet unless you’ve got the patience of a saint.

May 1st – 13:51 pm: I’m finally in! Here’s a screenshot of how lame my character looks. Seems like questgivers still have that obnoxious exclamation mark floating above their heads and a trail of what seems to be pixie dust is showing the way to my current objective.

A quick FYI: movement seems fluid, something I consider a major plus when it comes to mmo’s. I’ve seen far to many games with clunky characters that completely break any form of immersion.

I’ll be qoing some basic quests, expect some more information in a bit.

May 1st – 13:30 pm: still in queue, at 2133 at the moment. Is it me, or does the background remind anyone else of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm’s style?

May 1st – 12:13 pm: Today I’ve decided to throw myself at the Neverwinter open beta. I’ve always been a fan of those old D&D inspired rpgs like Baldur’s Gate, Icewind Dale and the Neverwinter Nights games themselves. Add to that the fact that I’ve been looking for a new mmo to donate what little spare time I have left to, and NWN seems like a winning combination.

Below is a screencap of how far I’ve gotten so far.

So… not very far obviously. The queue is miles-long, especially considering the game initially placed me at 8799. I’m hoping to start playing within the next 30 minutes or so. Expect updates as I make a name for myself as Gromple, the Half-Elf Control Wizard.